Bonjour, bonjour! Has it seriously been ... *counts on fingers, starts to type, forgets number & recounts* ... 7 months since I sent out a newsletter??

Let’s pretend not.

It has been a crazy time of teaching, preparing to move, and a lot of growing & soul-searching. I’ve posted quite a few blog posts since then, but I won’t give y’all a complete rundown here. I am still trying to figure out what to do in these letters, but I decided to jump in with both feet and try some stuff out, and I hope you won’t mind. <3

So for this newsletter, I decided to do a “currently” type of update!

Currently I am…

(categories stolen from Mikayla Holman & Julie Geoffrion)

Writing… I haven’t done any official writing in weeks. However, I have done some brainstorming for my secret Sherlock Holmes+Phantom of the Opera retelling. It was actually very fun and felt very good, being creative again.

Wondering… when I’ll be able to take trips and go visit friends. <3 And what the future will bring me, tbh. XD

Watching… I tend to watch several things at once (kinda like I read, haha!). I’m currently watching a police show, Redwall, and a Russian Sherlock Holmes retelling TV show, and I have a couple other movies/shows lined up to do when I have time/inclination. I’ve also kind of gotten into Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies…

Waiting… to move. I am gonna be so grateful when it happens! Hopefully it’s quite soon and I’ll be able to start my business and get a job this fall!!!

Thanking… God for health. I never realized how I took a more or less solid health for granted! Sure, I get sick and I have some physical ailments, but I don’t have a debilitating chronic illness or anything, and I am so grateful for it, because I don’t think I could take it…

Texting… almost no one, tbh. It’s an interesting season right now—very much alone and reserved, yet I’m not quite lonely. Anyways, I’m really just texting my family + my very closest friends right now. :)

Starting… a new collection: contemporary songs that have really touched me. I have a notebook where I am transcribing my favourite hymns, but I didn’t feel like these songs fit in the category, so a new notebook has been begun! :)

Reading… I’m mostly working on ARCs and books for my OFBL March-June challenge… I am a little behind on that! 😫 (<< that’s like my new fav emoji. idk why) At the moment I am reading Mansfield Park (my reading challenge), Yours is the Night (Read Another Page’s challenge + mine), 1 Corinthians (Bible-in-a-year challenge), and Isaiah in my personal devotions. I’ve been reading mostly rereads/old favs this year, because I was so frustrated with many of the new books I’d been reading, and it’s been epic. I feel refreshed and ready to dive into new books, BUT I will layer them well with old favs. :)

Posting… very little on Instagram (😬) but a lot on OFBL and LBFJ. I got ALL my posts scheduled and written for OFBL except for 1-3 reviews yet to be written, and I have most of my posts written and scheduled for LBFJ up to September. *fist pump*

Playing… Project Makeover. I was kind of obsessed with that when I started in February 😬 but by April I started pulling away from it and we’re good now. It’s quite fun!

Meditating… on several things. I kinda realized something that has been worrying me for YEARS because I couldn’t get involved in it yet, I could just pray about. I decided it was okay to pray about stuff I desired and I was just going to accept my hopes & dreams and move on with life instead of spending it in a vicious circle wondering if I should have that dream in the first place. I guess really what I’ve been realizing is that even if God has it all worked out, He likes hearing from me and He’s okay with me asking for things and if it isn’t for me He’ll take the desire from me if I hold my heart open to Him.

Loving… taking walks. Seriously, it’s become something I really enjoy and do not just for the Spring 100 Challenge but because it actually helps me. I’m also loving interacting with my siblings. Makes my heart happy while I wait for my own kids :)

Listening… to my playlist of fav songs. I’m in love with this CD again! Also I am listening to my siblings sing So Long, Farewell from “The Sound of Music” and Singin’ in the Baff Tub from “Tweet & Lovely.” Everyone is sick of the songs and it’s my fault because I began the craze by singing the songs to my little sisters to get them to bed. Whoopsie...

Hoping to… publish soon. I know, I know, I said it would happen and never did anything. I really haven’t felt lead to, guys. But recently I’ve been feeling a peace in going forwards and editing The Colour Red again. I’m praying about publishing and waiting for the answer + direction.

Hating… HICCUPS!!! I’ve been hiccuping steadily for 20 minutes and oh, I despise hiccups. In others as well as me. I teased my 13yo sister for having hiccups earlier today so now she is teasing me back for it… it’s not quite as fun. XD

Going… to Alberta! My sister and I are flying over there and coming back on a cross-country trip with some family members. It’ll be our first time flying since we were babies, so it will be interesting!

Finishing… my list of things I have to do before I leave. I want to organize my Kindle, stay atop of my reviews, and do some more LBFJ posts… among other things. XD But the super important stuff has been done. ☺️

Feeling… tired. Today we cleaned the house to take pictures to list online and I was so tired from just cleaning my bedroom and the bathroom that I had to lie down. Very odd!

Enjoying… journaling! I’m still spasmodic but I am journaling a little more and I do enjoy it so much. <3

Eating… I had an Oreo drumstick today. I prefer normal drumsticks after all. XD I also started making no-knead bread and love it! The first loaf rested too long and tasted heavy but the second loaf was delish. And I made chicken stirfry Saturday (during a thunderstorm that kept knocking the electricity off) and it was super fun and super good, even if I forgot I was supposed to pair it with couscous and made rice instead. 😢

Doing… I honestly don’t know right now. I think I need to start tracking my time because I have no clue where it’s going most days 😅 But I guess the point is I am growing & maturing, all the while trying to be helping my family. ☺️

Discovering… ways to sleep! I have serious struggles with sleeping and finally googled solutions Saturday. I found this post and tried the method that night. I discovered, during the sleepovers I had this year with girl friends, that I sleep faster when there’s another adult in my room, because I can match their breathing. My little sisters don’t breath deeply enough for me to hear them. So anyways I tried a mix of the solutions from the post. Relaxed well, pretended I was at my friend’s house and that I could hear her breathing, and starting concentrating on breathing. In all honesty I ended up realizing something I wanted to think of and deliberately sabotaged myself, but I was almost asleep before that happened, so I think I found the clue!

Crafting… nothing yet but I want to make a new fabric cover for my Kindle before I go on the plane because it is wrecked.

Considering… tutoring. I enjoy teaching, specifically on specific subjects, and it would certainly be a job I could do + one that there are openings for!

Celebrating… having a proofreading job for a friend in July!!

Overall, it’s been a good time, even if it was hard at times. :)

Let me know how y’all have been doing! I love hearing from you <3

Au revoir! And thanks for hanging around <3

Recent Blog Posts

1. So Be It—You Are Still Good
2. Spell the Month in Books // January-May
3. April 2022 Wrap-Up
4. Channels Only

Book Spotlight

This is the story of one old-fashioned little kingdom in Europe and the large, loving family that rules it. As new king Addison and his many siblings face changes within their families, revolution within their country, and challenges within their personal lives, they must learn to keep trusting the Master Author and keep choosing to do the right thing as they wait for their life’s purpose, their significant other, or the answers they seek…

I’ve been rereading this series this month, since book 4 is FINALLY coming out and I have a review copy (!!!!!!!) I didn’t love it quite as much as my fangirly little 18-year-old self did, but I still loved them and mostly, I appreciated them way more. There are some seriously epic messages in here!

• My reviews: The Coronation | The Rebellion | The Wedding

Next time I hope to have some fun links here, so keep your eyes peeled!

QOTD // What is one food you you hated but now you’ve learned to eat?

AOTD: I hated mayonnaise for years and had fits if it was on my food. Now I’ve learned to eat it because when our church ladies make sandwiches, they slather on that mayo and yet the sandwiches are DELISH and I can’t say no. I’ve even learned to eat it on lettuce and lick my fingers clean (even if it is kinda gross to me still...). However, the smell of mayo still disgusts me.